Thirlmere reservoir - safety information

We want all visitors at Thirlmere to experience a great day out in the beautiful landscape, but it’s really important that you can do so safely.

In spring 2018 a large number of established trees were blown down in extreme weather conditions during the 'Beast from the East'. Some of the trees were more than 100ft tall and weighed almost five tonnes. This also resulted in a lot of loose soil and boulders which made some of the banks unstable.

We understand the temporary Thirlmere west road, car park and footpath closures have been frustrating and impacted on both recreational and community access. Our team have been working with specialist contractors to safely carry out the essential recovery and repair work as quickly as possible.

As a result, we have been issued with a health notice to fell or take appropriate action to remove diseased trees between Shoulthwaite Moss and Middlesteads Gill. It is likely that further areas of trees are also affected around the Thirlmere estate and we're working closely with the Forestry Commission and Natural England to fully assess the impact. Obviously we are extremely saddened by this and our team have been working closely with partners to plan the necessary action.

Open areas for public access

Thank you for your patience and understanding while our team and specialist contractors have been working to safely allow areas to be re-opened.

There is now full public access at the south end of Thirlmere, along the west road and lakeshore footpath up to Armboth car park.

The final section from Armboth car park to Shoulthwaite Moss will need to remain closed until all of the clearance work that is necessary as a result of the tree health notice is completed. At this stage we are expecting this to be completed in March 2019.

It is vital that visitors stay safe while visiting Thirlmere, so please observe signage which is clearly displayed at the areas which remain closed. We're working as quickly as we can and will provide updates when further areas are able to re-open for public access.